


How To Save My Scum Villain Big Bro

by Sakhyu



Category: The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System (人渣反派自救系统), 人渣反派自救系统 - 墨香铜臭 | The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System - Mòxiāng Tóngshiù
Genre: Brotherly Love, Fix-It, Fix-It of Sorts, Fluff and Angst, Humor, M/M, Multi, Shen Jiu is also a good bro, Shěn Yuán Is a Good Bro
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-04
Updated: 2019-05-30
Packaged: 2019-10-04 00:07:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17293913
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sakhyu/pseuds/Sakhyu
Summary: After dying in real life, Shen Yuan woke up not as Shen QingQiu, but as Shen QingQiu’s younger bro! And the most horrifying part of that was......the scummy villain Shen QingQiu was just thexianxiaversion of his grumpy, modern day older brother!Butt aside, Luo BingHe, because Shen Yuan wasn’t gonna let you kill off his only bro!Now, equipped with a System and his brains of steel, Shen Yuan must help Shen Jiu mend his relationships, find love, and gallop off into the sunset with a happily-ever-after. Although, perhaps love could blossom during his mission as wingman too......?AKA this is a story where Shen Yuan goes through Great Lengths™ to help his brother find happiness, Shen Jiu goes through Great Lengths™ to keep his younger brother away from the thirsty Luo BingHe (but fails), and Cang Qiong Sect is just a synonym for the protective wife’s family.





	1. oh no, not the barbecue dinner—!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Coughing out a lung, come find me at my translation site [Sakhyulations](https://www.sakhyulations.com/) or my [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sakhyuu)!

Sunlight streamed into the white hospital room, lighting up one side of a young man's handsome face.

“I fell asleep? Why didn’t you wake me up?” A muffled voice spoke up.

Shen Yuan hummed in a distracted manner. “You looked like you could use the sleep.”

A quiet groan accompanied the sound of rustling bed sheets. Shen Yuan gave the lump by his bedside a comforting pat as he scrolled down on his phone, eyes hungrily reading the text on the screen even as his heart spat out countless curses.

_‘Protagonist Luo BingHe, are you even a man?! Why are you leaving your bed?? Both Ning YingYing and Sha HuaLing were waiting to service you!_

_The hell? You’re going to the dungeons?! Now?! You’re leaving your wives to go to the dungeons just so you can insult Shen QingQiu??_

_That being said, why the f*ck haven’t you just chopped off your scummy shifu’s jade stalk?? Don’t tell me it's because Airplane Shooting Towards The Sky wanted to try out a dungeon play scene?!’_

“You’re reading that webnovel again?” The lump beside him murmured, voice thick with sleep. Following that, a head popped out of the blankets Shen Yuan had casually dropped onto his brother when the other man had fallen asleep. “I thought you dropped it after your huge rant last time?”

<<Proud Immortal Demon Way>> was a webnovel by an upstart author, Airplane Shooting Towards The Sky. However, because of a stroke of fate (or maybe it was because most hot-blooded guys liked reading about a protagonist who wooed a thousand beauties), he managed to somehow top the charts with his first webnovel.

Shen Yuan had read the novel because surprisingly enough, Airplane Shooting Towards The Sky was good at weaving plots outside of his _papapa_ sessions. There were mysteries that only ended up being half-solved and hinted at bigger conspiracies, interesting backstories and treasures, and even the world-building was awesome when it didn’t revolve around how much sperm the protagonist Luo BingHe had. Shen Yuan was hooked even from chapter one.

The only downside to all of this was......none of the mysteries were ever solved! The more he neared the end, the more nervous Shen Yuan became, although he still had faith in the story’s finale.

On the other hand, though, his brother despised the book, mostly because one of the scum villains that got utterly destroyed by the protagonist shared his name. Shen Yuan spent a lot of time teasing him over it.

“I’ve invested so much time into it already, so I just want to finish it,” Shen Yuan replied, eyes still glued to the screen even as he snatched back the blankets that were about to slide onto the floor. “Now shush, _ge_ , I’m almost done.”

The words, ‘ _just in time too_ ’, were left unspoken, even as the easy ambivalence of the room suddenly solidified.

“......You know,” his older brother, Shen Jiu, began in a blank tone. “If you like the story so much, I can always contact the author and commission a sequel from them.”

Despite himself, Shen Yuan felt the corners of his lips twitch into a small smile. “Nah, it’s fine. I’m sure the ending of the story won’t leave me wanting for more.”

“Alright, if you’re so sure,” Shen Jiu looked away. “......I’ll see you later then?”

When his older brother had found out about his illness, Shen Jiu began pushing off all work so he could spend more time with his brother before......In any case, this was the one business meeting he couldn’t put off no matter what.

“I’ll see you later,” Shen Yuan promised warmly as his eyes raked over his older brother’s haggard form. Forcing his smile to brighten, he tugged on Shen Jiu’s sleeve like how he did when they were children. “Tonight, let’s go out and eat barbecue? Please?”

Shen Jiu’s pursed lips relaxed slightly. “Alright, barbecue it is.”

* * *

 Except, Shen Yuan never got to see his brother again, much less eat his promised barbecue dinner.

A few hours after his brother left, Shen Yuan got to the end of the webnovel. And, well......

“Stupid author, stupid novel!”

Shen Yuan’s chest heaved in anger as he tossed his phone away. The ending......! The ending hadn’t cleared up any of those mysteries!!! He should have known with Airplane Shooting Towards The Sky’s tendency to drop plot points everywhere in a disjointed manner, but he had been hopeful......! Too hopeful, it seemed.

“Brother Airplane, Great God! Please! Fill! Plotholes! Okay?!” Shen Yuan yelled through gritted teeth, chest fluttering like the wings of a butterfly. He felt so angry and cheated at the moment that he believed, should he die right this instant, he would come back as a ghost to haunt Airplane Shooting Towards The Sky.

And then ironically, as if in response to that very thought, Shen Yuan's view of the world began wobbling dangerously as he almost lurched out of his bed.

Before, Shen Yuan had been so angry that he hadn’t realized his breaths were coming out in shorter and shorter gasps. Sure, he had noticed on a subconscious level, but he had believed it was because he had felt too frustrated.

Only after he had vented out his anger did Shen Yuan suddenly realize something important—he couldn’t breathe.

Black spots danced in his vision as the shouts of nurses and doctors grew louder. Before everything went black, Shen Yuan thought—

_I take it back, I hope big brother forces Airplane to write that sequel!_

* * *

 In the cold, endless darkness, a mechanical female voice similar to Google Translate sounded near his ear.

【Activation Code：「Stupid author, stupid novel」. Automatically triggering system.】

 _What......_? Shen Yuan thought blearily. For a moment, he struggled to open his eyes, but the familiar hand stroking his hair blasted all his worries to smithereens as he settled down again.

And right before he fell asleep, he heard that voice speak up again.

【Congratulations, dear host! The system activation was successful! Binding your role: Shen Jiu’s younger brother, Cang Qiong Mountain sect, Qing Jing Peak, Disciple ‘Shen Yuan’. Starting Happily-Ever-Ending Points: 100】

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sick right now, I feel akin to a wet sheet of tissue paper.  
> Kudos and comments are very appreciated QAQ


	2. to cosplay or to not cosplay, that is the question

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come find me at my translation site [Sakhyulations](https://www.sakhyulations.com/) or my [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sakhyuu)!

Shen Yuan woke up to the sound of his brother nagging him incessantly, like an annoying, buzzing mosquito. As this was something that happened (too) frequently, Shen Yuan had long learned to treat his brother’s nagging as the elevator music people subconsciously ignored.

In fact, the only reason he even registered his brother’s voice during his sleep was because he noticed that well-hidden note of anxiety within Shen Jiu’s tone. It was rare for things to make Shen Jiu nervous, and hearing his distress instinctively made Shen Yuan want to comfort his older brother......

“Shen Yuan, wake up. It’s time for you to drink your medicine.”

And then, after waking up enough to make out those words, Shen Yuan promptly decided it was time to burrow back into his covers and pretend his brother didn’t exist.

The heck, _gege_? Shen Jiu had long learned how to disguise his emotions as a young child. And although Shen Yuan could still read his big brother pretty well, the anxiety oozing out of Shen Jiu’s voice just now had almost been palpable! That was literally the only reason he even bothered to wake up! From the tone his brother had used, Shen Yuan had almost thought that the world had exploded.

Instead, the older boy only wanted him to drink his yucky medicine? Ugh.

Grumbling silently in complaint, Shen Yuan snuggled deeper into his bed and got ready to drift off once again. And he would have, had his brother not spoken up again.

“A-Yuan......”

“......”

Any irritation he felt at being woken up so rudely immediately melted away upon hearing Shen Jiu's quiet and desperate whisper. Something bad _had_ to have occurred if it could make the older boy sound like this, and Shen Yuan wasn’t about to sleep while his brother had to deal with it.

“Big brother......?” After scrunching up his face, Shen Yuan managed to open his eyes before he began blinking blearily at the blurry figure by his bedside. What he saw right now could be comparable to a thousand leaves and flower petals tumbling around manically. It took a while before everything began overlapping at one point as his vision finally cleared. “Big brother, what’s wrong?”

As he asked that question, Shen Yuan turned his head to his side to take in his surroundings. He was currently lying on an average-sized bed, perhaps a double. The air reeked of medicinal herbs, making his nose twitch in complaint as he shifted his eyes onto his brother.

“You’re finally awake!” Shen Jiu exclaimed in a hush, his eyes widening slightly in childish excitement—

......Wait.

Childish......Funnily enough, childish wasn’t too strange of a descriptor right now, because Shen Jiu was _literally_ a teenager.

A teenager with long, silky black hair who was currently wearing a _hanfu_. It looked like he was cosplaying some character from those ancient Chinese cultivation dramas.

Shen Yuan blinked twice at his older (......younger?) cosplaying brother before he slowly reached up to rub his eyes. Unfortunately, a quick glance at his brother after these actions revealed that no, it wasn’t his eyes malfunctioning on him.

“Big......brother?” Shen Yuan asked tentatively, almost wincing when he finally registered his own pre-puberty voice.

Alright, so both he and his older brother de-aged and then got dumped either into a different world or onto a movie set. Okay. _Okay_ , Shen Yuan could still deal with this.

Probably.

“You’re finally awake,” Shen Jiu repeated almost numbly as he instinctively began palming his younger brother’s forehead. “Is there any discomfort in your body?”

Shen Yuan frowned and catalogued his own condition. Surprisingly enough, other than feeling a bit dizzy and tired, he felt...... _alright_.

As in, he hadn’t felt this well in _years_.

“No,” Shen Yuan replied, slight shock tingeing his tone. “There is nothing wrong.”

......With his body, in the very least. But there was a whole load of things wrong with their current situation, so Shen Yuan had many questions. For example, what the heck was happening?

Why had he woken up here?

And the most intriguing: why did his brother’s face suddenly look pretty enough to be an idol advertising face cream?

“Big brother,” Shen Yuan pretended to be absent-minded, which wasn’t that hard considering how dizzy he felt. “Where is this?”

The older boy was startled for a moment before he replied, “Shen Yuan, did your brain melt in your sleep? This is Qing Jing Peak!”

Shen Yuan’s heart received a shock, but he continued to act as though he was confused: “I......why would I sleep for so long?”

His brother finally snapped, “I haven’t even asked you that. How did you suddenly get sick out of nowhere? Did you overuse your spiritual energy again in those ‘spars’ of yours? I swear, when I get my hands on those bastards......”

The more Shen Yuan listened, the more he felt that something wasn’t right. Well, this scene itself was quite a familiar sight, as Shen Yuan had been privy to many of his brother’s rants before the guy dealt with his bullies.

No, that wasn't it. It was everything else; _Qing Jing Peak_ , _spiritual energy_......

“Shen Yuan, are you even listening to me?” Shen Jiu frowned. “Next time anyone from Bai Zhan Peak comes across you and asks for a ‘spar’, reject them and direct them to _me_. Do you hear me?”

Another ‘ding’ confirmed his doubts as the mechanical Google Translate voice from his dreams spoke up again.

【We welcome your entrance into the system. This system is based on the new concept of 「let’s HE, let’s HE, let’s HE!」. We wish to provide you with the best experience. It is our sincere hope that during the course of your experience, you can achieve the final goal: to obtain a sequel with a Happy Ending for all the characters, including yourself! We pray for your happiness. 】

Bai Zhan Peak? System? _Sequel_?!

F*ck, f*ck, f*ck! Shen Yuan finally remembered what had happened before he had woken up here: AKA, he had sent the hospital into a panic after he finished reading the novel.

Which meant, since he had woken up here and not on his hospital bed with a worried brother beside him, had he......died? Transmigrated? Into the very book he had cursed out before he had lost consciousness?

The thought that he had died made him more upset than what he had originally expected. Although it had already been a foregone conclusion that he didn’t have much time left, Shen Yuan never would have thought that......that, that had been the last time he would ever see Shen Jiu.

He would never get to eat barbecue with his brother, ever again.

The grief that surged in his chest made his eyes redden slightly. For a short moment, he wondered what his brother would have done after he passed away.

Despite Shen Jiu’s grouchy, prickly self and Shen Yuan’s own habit of keeping others’ at a polite, arm’s length distance away, the two brothers had been incomparably close. In his world, Shen Jiu had been five years older than him, and had practically raised him since young. His brother had been his entire world.

_(And that was why a tiny, selfish part of Shen Yuan was glad......that he was the first to die, and not the one left behind.)_

In any case, Shen Yuan hoped that his brother was okay. He knew his brother wasn’t someone who would lose himself to grief, but his brother didn’t have any close friends......

“Shen Yuan, are you listening to me?” Shen Jiu demanded.

“A-Ah?” Startled out of his morbid thoughts, Shen Yuan forced himself to meet this Shen Jiu’s eyes. “Sorry, what was that?”

“Hmph,” Shen Jiu gave him a glare. “I said, you have to come to me if those buffoons come for you again. In the very least, I’m still Shen QingQiu, the next Peak Lord of Qing Jing Peak. I won't allow people to bully my little brother. Do you understand, Shen Yuan?”

Something exploded in Shen Yuan’s mind as he stared at his brother, completely horrified beyond words. He hadn't even registered the latter half of the older boy's words.

His terrified expression made Shen Jiu’s glare soften completely as the older boy leaned forward, concern flickering through his eyes. “Shen Yuan? What’s wrong?”

Shen QingQiu......who had once been called Shen Jiu.

The protagonist’s _Shizun_ , the one whose limbs had been chopped off until he turned into a human stick......!

“A-Yuan?” Shen Jiu reached out to place a hand on his forehead again. At the familiar gesture, Shen Yuan suddenly felt tears prick his eyes.

That tragic Shen Jiu from the novel......

Was actually his older brother in this world?!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god I wrote most of this in the bathroom on my phone in between the bouts of diarrhea and vomiting, curse you food poisoning and my campus cafeteria??!! Also I'm astounded at my own dedication to update this LMAO.
> 
> Going into midterm season, please send me prayers aha.


	3. don't look at me, or my little brother, my little brother, my little brother, and my little brother EVER again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come find me at my translation site [Sakhyulations](https://www.sakhyulations.com/) or my [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sakhyuu)!

“A-Yuan?!”

Shen Jiu didn’t even have the time to feel horrified before his younger twin’s face crumpled and he suddenly had a lapful of weeping brother. Shen Yuan clung to the front of his robes with thin and shaking fingers, chest heaving pitifully with each sob. He was crying so much, the front of Shen Jiu’s clothes were already feeling a bit damp.

Mind blanking for a few long moments, Shen Jiu stared at his little brother and felt utterly speechless. _What the hell_.

Did A-Yuan have nightmares? Or......had he been bullied more severely than what Shen Jiu had expected?

At the sudden thought, Shen Jiu immediately felt angry. Angry at the ones who bullied his brother, angry at his _brother_ for being so weak, for being bullied all the time. However......he also felt angry at himself, for not being able to protect the younger boy when his brother had needed him.

“A-Yuan......it’s fine, I’m here.”

But despite the anger festering in his chest, Shen Jiu’s heart still prickled with distress at the sight of his brother’s miserable state. Shifting a bit to hug Shen Yuan closer to himself, Shen Jiu lightly stroked his brother’s trembling back as he rocked the two of them back and forth. Whatever he was doing seemed to be working, because after a few long minutes, Shen Yuan’s sobs quieted down into soft sniffles.

And then all of Shen Jiu’s hard work at attempting to remain calm went up in flames when someone knocked onto the door. “QingQiu- _shidi_?”

Shen Yuan squeaked as Shen Jiu’s gentle embrace suddenly tightened to the point of pain. The older boy grit his teeth as his anger flared again. How dare he? How dare he come now and pretend to worry over them when his softer twin was so vulnerable and upset? _How dare he_ —

“QingQiu- _shidi_? I......” the voice was soft, tone controlled and gentle even though Shen Jiu could still pick up an underlying hint of anxiety thanks to their years of association.

 _Good, let him be apprehensive,_ Shen Jiu thought to himself viciously as he decided to leave Yue QingYuan outside. But then the person behind the door spoke up again, “I brought Mu _-shidi_ with me.”

“......”

“ _Ge..._... _Gege,_ you’re hurting me,” Shen Yuan spoke up quietly, voice a bit muffled. Only then did Shen Jiu realize just how tightly he had been holding his brother. Abruptly letting go, the older twin got up before stalking over to the door and jerking it open.

Mu QingFang was the chief disciple and the next Peak Lord of Qian Cao Peak. Other than his Master, there was no one else in their entire Sect who had better skill in the art of medicine.

If Yue QingYuan, the next Sect Leader, hadn’t been the one who invited him over, there would have been no way Mu QingFang would come to look after Shen Yuan.

After all, Shen Yuan wasn’t the chief disciple, he was just a normal disciple who was way behind the others because of his injured spirit vein. Unlike Shen Jiu, Shen Yuan was dispensable to Qing Jing Peak.

And that was _unacceptable_.

It rankled Shen Jiu to know that he had essentially lost this round, that he had to accept Yue QingYuan’s help. But this was for his little brother’s sake.

 _This is for Shen Yuan_ , Shen Jiu told himself sternly, even as that ugly part of him reared its head and whispered, _You’re weak, weak, weak. Why aren’t you strong enough to help him yourself?_

“Yue- _shixiong_ , Mu- _shidi_ ,” Shen Jiu greeted in a cold but cordial manner. “QingQiu apologizes for the delay, and thanks both for taking the time to visit my brother.”

Both teenagers stared at him in unconcealed shock and, in Mu QingFang’s case, with growing interest. Shen Jiu frowned, before following their gazes and looking down at himself. The moment he did so, however, he couldn’t stop his face from darkening.

Shen Jiu looked like a mess! Thanks to his brother’s tears, the front of his clothes were soaked through, enough to the point that one could make out how his inner robes looked like. And if that wasn’t bad enough, they were extremely crumpled and messy, in a way that hadn’t happened since the Shen twins had been taken off the streets.

Shen Jiu took a deep, _deep_ breath as Yue QingYuan politely faked a cough in what seemed to be an attempt to conceal his embarrassment. No, Shen Jiu couldn’t afford to antagonize or kick these two out yet. _For his brother,_ the seething teenager chanted in his mind.

“My apologies,” Shen Jiu said again as he squeezed the words through his clenched teeth. He didn’t need to elaborate what he was apologizing for, not when the two people in front of him were already well aware. “My brother was quite distressed.”

“Shen- _shixiong_ has no need to apologize,” Mu QingFang stated warmly, even as his curious gaze flitted behind Shen Jiu. “If _shixiong_ permits it, may QingFang take a look at _shidi_?”

“Of course,” Shen Jiu said as he opened the door wider and led the both of them inside. He tried to ignore how Yue QingYuan was resolutely not looking at him anymore. “Mu- _shidi_ will greatly assuage _shixiong_ ’s concerns if he does so.”

Seniority in the Cang Qiong Sect was based on the peaks. Although Shen Jiu and his brother had entered the Sect years later than Mu QingFang, because Qing Jing Peak was ranked second in the entire Sect, everyone but Yue QingYuan had to address Shen Jiu as  _shixiong_ since he was the next Peak Lord. However, that didn’t hold true for his brother, who was just a regular disciple of his generation.

Speaking of his twin brother, Shen Yuan was sitting up now, although he was still on the bed where he had left him. It looked like his brother had at least attempted to clean himself up, but the youngest boy’s mask of nonchalance wasn’t very convincing when the rims of his eyes were terribly red and puffy. Shen Yuan looked absolutely wretched and miserable, and even Shen Jiu felt sorry for him despite sharing the same face.

But for a brief moment, Shen Jiu felt a sudden flare of panic as he stared at his brother. With how Shen Yuan was swathed in his white blankets, it almost seemed as if his sickly and pale brother was going to disappear. Shen Jiu had the urge to bundle Shen Yuan up and hide him away from the world, so nobody could hurt his brother ever again.

It didn’t help that Mu QingFang was now directing that interested gaze of his at _Shen Yuan_ instead.

Sure, Shen Jiu objectively knew that Mu QingFang was just curious about the two of them. Despite Shen Jiu’s own desires of bringing his brother with him to his daily meetings with the other future Peak Lords, his brother had been too sickly ever since they had left the Qiu family. In fact, other than Yue QingYuan, the Qing Jing Peak disciples and some Bai Zhan Peak disciples, nobody even knew Shen Yuan had existed.

But even while knowing all of that, Shen Jiu couldn’t help but shift a bit to block Mu QingFang’s view.

Mu QingFang immediately darted a quick look at Shen Jiu before settling his gaze away from Shen Yuan. This was why Shen Jiu could tolerate Mu _-shidi_. At least this guy could read this situation, unlike Yue QingYuan, who _was still not looking at him_.

“ _Gege_ ,” Shen Yuan spoke up softly, his voice sounding quite hoarse. Shen Jiu silently poured him a cup of water and handed it to him. But although his brother took it absentmindedly, the younger boy’s gaze only flitted between Yue QingYuan and Mu QingFang. “Who......Who are......?”

This time, even Yue QingYuan raised his head in bewilderment. Shen Jiu stared at his brother as the beginnings of dread pooled in his gut. It couldn’t be......

“Xiao Yuan, what’s the matter? I’m your Qi- _ge_ ,” Yue QingYuan whispered in a hushed voice. Normally, Shen Jiu would rip Yue QingYuan a new one just for saying that, but right now, he was too busy staring at Shen Yuan. And at how his younger brother seemed to have no recollection of what the name _Qi-ge_ even meant to the both of them.

Mu QingFang was frowning now as he gently reached over to take Shen Yuan’s pulse. The longer he held his fingers over Shen Yuan’s wrist, the deeper his frown became. Finally, he released Shen Yuan’s hand and turned to Shen Jiu. “I think......I think my Master should make a trip over here.”

The teenager paused before continuing in a hesitant tone. “Shen- _shixiong_ , Yue- _shixiong_ , QingFang......QingFang believes that _shidi_ has suffered a Qi deviation.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why am I always posting before my midterms??? Wish me luck and light me some incense for biology. 🙏
> 
> Also, I realized in the process of writing this chapter that I'm REALLY bad at keeping SV characters in character, esp. Shen Jiu.............I cry flat-noodle shaped tears. 😂😂😂


	4. there's two of you now?!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come find me at my translation site [Sakhyulations](https://www.sakhyulations.com/) or my [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sakhyuu)!

“ _Ge..._...” Shen Yuan spoke up softly, hesitantly, as he chewed on his lower lip. “Are you sure I can come with you?”

Shen Jiu didn’t even bother replying to that stupid question as he shot his nervous twin a sharp look.

Why was Shen Yuan like this? How could he dump the responsibilities of his Peak onto his brother if the younger behaved so pathetically?

The other peak lords would walk all over him like they did to the Peak Lord of An Ding Peak! Just this mere thought almost made Shen Jiu double his twin’s current training regime.

“You’ll have to deal with them as much as I will have to in the future,” Shen Jiu huffed testily, unconcerned with how he was essentially telling Shen Yuan his intentions of making his brother share some of his future duties. “It’s better if everyone gets acquainted now.”

"I guess......” Shen Yuan mumbled while following closely behind him, so close he was practically stepping on his heels. Shen Jiu resisted the urge to snap at him— _A-Yuan was just nervous, he’ll be less sticky in the future_ —and instead slanted his brother another glare. “Your appearance is unsightly. Fix your posture.”

“ _Ge_ ,” Shen Yuan pouted before obediently straightening up his back. Resisting the urge to roll his eyes at his childish twin, Shen Jiu stopped before a door. He could already hear quiet murmurs coming from inside the room, some soft but all familiar.

Reaching out a hand, Shen Jiu paused right before opening the door. Instead, he decided to turn around, facing his bewildered brother as he studied his twin’s face. Shen Yuan’s complexion had improved leaps and bounds compared to before, but his cheeks still had an abnormal, rosy flush.

_A-Yuan looked so fragile._

Shen Jiu hesitated for a long moment as his twin blinked at him in confusion. In the end, however, the sight of his stupidly weak brother still made him speak up. “If anyone dares to make you uncomfortable,” he began in a gruff tone. “Don’t concern yourself with them.”

Silence.

His brother stared at him with wide eyes, looking completely dazed. Just when Shen Jiu began despairing over whether or not he should repeat his words for this useless brother of his, Shen Yuan blinked at him two more times before the corners of his lips twitched.

Shen Jiu scowled as he immediately whipped around, ears burning. Despite Shen Yuan’s best attempts to stay emotionless, Shen Jiu _knew_ that the glint in his twin’s eyes meant the younger boy was laughing at him.

How dare his brother make fun of him! He—

“Thank you, _ge_ ,” a gentle voice spoke up behind him.

“......”

Shen Jiu’s own lips curved up slightly as he reached out and opened the door.

* * *

Eleven beautiful teenagers sat around a large, stone table. With a unique jade pendant hanging by their waists, each one of them were dressed in robes more elaborate than a normal disciple of their Peaks.

This was the next generation of Peak Lords, the future backbone of Cang Qiong Sect.

When he stepped into the room, Shen Jiu’s fleeting smile had long dissipated into his usual expressionless look. The quiet chatter that had filled the place immediately settled before a boy sitting beside Yue QingYuan snorted.

“You’re late,” the teenager accused in a flat tone as he took a gulp of his tea. Unfortunately for him, that was the exact moment Shen Yuan decided to walk in as well.

“!!!”

Shen Jiu felt a vindictive pleasure as he watched Liu QingGe choke on his mouthful of tea. In fact, the future lord of Bai Zhan Peak ungracefully spat it out on the poor Shang QingHua sitting across from him.

Amusingly enough, Shang QingHua didn’t even seem to notice how he had been suddenly drenched, because he was also staring at the Shen brothers with wide eyes. Even the normally composed Wei QingWei dropped the cookie he had been holding from shock.

“What is the meaning of this?!” The only girl in the group suddenly shrieked as she stared at the identical faces in disbelief.

“There’s two of you now?!” Liu QingGe blurted out at the same time, sounding completely horrified.

Shen Jiu opened his fan and used it to hide his smirk. “How rude, _shimei, shidi_. You two ought to show my brother more respect.”

Ignoring the twin sounds of outrage, he chanced a glance back at his twin and was satisfied to see Shen Yuan stare placidly at his fellow chief disciples. Good, his brother had enough sense to not do anything that would shame their shared face.

Then again, between the two of them, Shen Yuan was the better actor when he was truly serious.

“QingQiu- _shidi_ , Yuan- _shidi_ , please sit down.” Yue QingYuan spoke up in a warm but careful tone as Mu QingFang gave Shen Yuan a friendly wave. Their de facto head was avoiding both the twins’ eyes, and looked rather......

Shen Jiu’s lips thinned in displeasure. Yue QingYuan looked absolutely awful, even worse than the dying puppies he used to see on the streets during winter. In fact, his pallid complexion could give Shen Yuan’s a run for his money.

When that thought flitted across his mind, Shen Jiu immediately squashed the slight worry in his chest before turning his head away. Whatever Yue QingYuan’s problem was, it wasn’t _his_ problem anymore. The only person Shen Jiu needed to care about was his brother.

“Welcome, _shixiong_. Oh, and congratulations to _shidi_ for his breakthrough,” Mu QingFang piped up gently.

“......Hmph,” Shen Jiu’s sudden anger was slightly mollified upon hearing Mu QingFang’s words.

When they had been taken back to Cang Qiong Sect, Shen Yuan’s spiritual vein had already been badly damaged. And even before it had happened, Shen Jiu’s brother was never the epitome of good health.

By the time they were relatively safe on Qing Jing Peak, Shen Yuan......could barely cultivate.

More accurately, he could barely stay awake.

During the few times Shen Yuan was healthy enough to cultivate, and wasn’t in a coma or feverish, the process was painful enough that the younger would rarely take the initiative to practice. And despite his best efforts, he did not manage to build his Foundation even after a few years.

At night, under the cover of darkness, Shen Jiu would wipe his brother’s feverish limbs and wonder......would his brother wither away and die? Shen Jiu was already near Golden Core formation, and once he achieved it, his life would be many times longer than a normal mortal’s.

If his brother did not build a Golden Core, or even a Foundation......would his brother, his twin, his one constant in life......leave him behind and die?

The thought terrified Shen Jiu. There were times in the past where he had swallowed his pride and literally _begged_ his brother to try a little harder, to withstand the pain and cultivate a little longer — _for him, please, A-Yuan_. He couldn’t imagine life without his twin, the only person he trusted in this world, the only person who had never left him behind.

So, when Shen Jiu found out that the Qi deviation Shen Yuan suffered had _fixed_ his twin’s spiritual vein, of all things, he had been overjoyed. Within just a few short months, his healed brother managed to finally build his Foundation!

Even if this came at a cost of Shen Yuan’s memories, that was nothing in the long run. After all, they weren’t even good memories, so it was enough for just Shen Jiu to remember.

“Many thanks, Mu- _shixiong_ ,” Shen Yuan replied politely.

“Shen- _shixiong_ ,” Wei QingWei spoke up as he waved a hand in Shen Yuan’s direction. “This is……?”

“My younger twin brother,” Shen Jiu replied in a clipped manner as he shifted slightly to block Shen Yuan from everyone’s heated stares. His brother might not have started fidgeting, but Shen Jiu could sense the younger’s distress even though his face remained as serene as before.

“ _Shixiong, shijie,_ ” Shen Yuan greeted politely as he bowed his head. With the exception of Yue QingYuan, Mu QingFang, and of course Shen Jiu himself, everyone else looked as if they had walked into some twilight zone.

“......And he is here, because?” Liu QingGe demanded brusquely as he looked away.

Shen Jiu glared at him before snapping, “Is there a problem with him being here?”

"You......!" Liu QingGe's eye twitched before his hand inched toward his sword.

“ _Shidi_!” Yue QingYuan cut in before a brawl broke out. At the same time, Shen Jiu felt something pinch his palm. The boy immediately slanted a look at his brother, who only blinked at him innocently.

“......Fine!” Shen Jiu swallowed the insults he wanted to hurl in Liu QingGe’s direction before grabbing Shen Yuan’s hand and dragging him over to the empty seat left at the table. Sniffing haughtily, he ignored everyone’s bug-eyed stares and said, “I have _Shifu_ ’s permission to bring Shen Yuan.”

Yue QingYuan paused before nodding. After he gently ordered a disciple to fetch them another chair, Yue QingYuan began passing everyone some papers.

“Let us start the meeting first, we can all socialize after we talk about business,” he began, voice unusually grim. “This is what we will focus on today. Our next assignment is—”

Shen Jiu reached out to grab the mission brief. The moment he skimmed it, his eyebrows quirked up in surprise.

“The _jiangshi_ army surrounding Mingyang City.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Switching back to Shen Yuan's pov next chapter! Pretty sure everyone misses him, LOL, but I'll be switching povs between SJ and SY every two chapters.  
> It's hard to write SJ in this fic, because canon him is so bitter, but the SJ here is much more mellow because of SY. That being said, he has other insecurities and stuff as well because of SY's existence, so essentially, he's not the same as canon SJ. There's a reason why he's so protective of SY too, although that's going to come up much later in this fic.  
> Anyway, I just finished writing a 6-paged paper for immunology before switching to fanfiction lol @.@ Hopes everyone enjoys this!


	5. do you want some lemon juice with that?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come find me at my translation site [Sakhyulations](https://www.sakhyulations.com/) or my [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sakhyuu)!

Their parents passed away when Shen Yuan had been ten. Or at least, their second set of parents did. Shen Yuan’s biological parents had passed away only two years prior, leaving a set of four siblings on their own. While eldest brother and little sister had been sent to different homes, Shen Yuan had been miraculously adopted by the same couple as his second brother.

Anyway, the cause of their second parents’ untimely demises was a complete cliché; a car accident. A drunk driver on the opposite lane had swerved straight into their path, causing a head-on collision in which their parents had died instantly upon impact.

In fact, that horrible accident only had one severely injured survivor......and that was Shen Yuan.

It was truly a miracle he had survived. Even before the accident, the younger of their family had never been at optimal health. As a result, chronic illnesses piling on top of a weak immune system made visits to the hospital a frequent occurrence for their family.

The car accident only worsened everything. When Shen Yuan had been rescued out of the wrecked remnants of his car, he had nearly been dead already. Following desperate attempts of resuscitation by frantic paramedics, Shen Yuan managed to somehow survive, although his legs had been beyond saving. In addition, he ended up drifting off into a coma that lasted a whole two months.

Even now, Shen Yuan could still remember—with startling clarity—the scene he had saw when he first opened his eyes. His second older brother, only fifteen at the time, had been sitting slumped on the chair beside his hospital bed. Despite being entangled with the throes of sleep, Shen Jiu had a deep furrow on his forehead and......

_Oh_ , Shen Yuan remembered thinking, slightly dazed at the time as he stared at the sparkling trails that wet Shen Jiu’s sunken cheeks. _So, it turned out that even his cold-hearted big brother was capable of crying_.

When he was younger, Shen Yuan hadn’t been too close to his brother. Shen Jiu had kept everyone at arm’s length; his friends, his classmates, and his parents. And Shen Yuan, the only sibling left by his side, hadn’t gotten any special treatment in this respect.

Sometimes, young Shen Yuan would secretly wonder if his brother was even human. In fact, Shen Yuan had always thought his older brother was like a robot going through the motions of life.

Although Shen Jiu was only five years older than him, he behaved infinitely more mature. He moved with a grace that few adults could imitate, and he was always emotionless yet unnervingly polite. Shen Jiu’s distant gaze never lingered on anyone, as if nothing in the mortal world could enter his eyes.

Ironically enough, this Shen Jiu, the stranger that lived in his house and sat at his dinner table, died the very day Shen Yuan woke up from his coma with a new lease on life. The person who replaced him was a bitter, cruel boy who had turned his back on the heavens......but, he became a brother who loved Shen Yuan.

_Or perhaps_ , Shen Yuan thought when his older brother woke up and broke into quiet sobs the very moment he realized the younger was awake, _Gege......had always loved him?_

“A-Yuan, uncle and auntie are already gone,” Shen Jiu mumbled as he held Shen Yuan’s hand in a death grip. “And you......they said, they said you won’t wake up again.”

Even though he was being pumped with pain killers, Shen Yuan still felt something in his heart ache when he heard Shen Jiu’s voice break toward the end. His infallible older brother had always remained calm even in the worst of situations. For him to be so ragged because of their broken family, because of _him..._...

It turned out that apparently, Shen Yuan had loved his _gege_ too.

* * *

 “A-Yuan?” Shen Jiu asked as he reached out to palm his forehead. It was such a familiar scene, it made Shen Yuan’s eyes water......before a sudden wave of panic washed over him, threatening to swallow him whole.

His brother was Shen Jiu. His brother was <<Proud Immortal Demon Way>>’s _Shen QingQiu_.

That gruesomely detailed paragraph about Shen QingQiu’s end flashed through his mind. Limbs ripped away, eyes and tongue plucked, ears deafened......Shen Yuan felt his breathing quicken involuntarily.

Before, he hadn’t thought much about Shen QingQiu’s demise. After all, it was all fiction. In fact, he had even been rooting for the protagonist to castrate his scummy _shifu_.

Although such a thing had ultimately never happened (thank goodness), Shen QingQiu still ended up dying in a horrific manner. The villain’s soul had completely shattered, while his corpse was ripped to shreds and fed to wild dogs.

Shen Yuan’s brother...... _was going to die_.

Breath catching in his throat, Shen Yuan breathed in deeply to dispel his sudden dizziness. _No_ , he thought distantly, fear all but buzzing beneath his skin. _He had to remain calm._

Freaking out now would do absolutely nothing; nothing for the brother currently looking at him with concern, and nothing for himself.

......Crying wouldn’t help either. Discreetly, Shen Yuan sniffed in an attempt to rid his nose of its sudden sourness. His watery eyes were also burning fiercely, as if he was chopping apart a lemon.

......Wait, was it just Shen Yuan, or was there really the smell of a freshly cut lemon in the air?

【 _Ding_! Welcome to the Little Scene Accelerator Helper, dear host! You have fulfilled the requirements for one (1) cut-scene! Please fasten your seatbelt, sit back, and enjoy the show!】

The hell, a cut-scene?! What was this, an otome game?!

Before Shen Yuan could even pick out something else to roast, the lemon scent in the air suddenly intensified to an unbearable degree. In addition, it felt like someone had splashed his eyes with the lemon juice itself.

Choking on the smell and with his eyes stinging like mad, Shen Yuan’s previously unshed tears began rapidly dripping down his face. And as if that wasn’t embarrassing enough, something gave him a hard push from behind, a move that unfortunately sent him sprawling into Shen Jiu’s lap.

“A-Yuan?!”

Let Shen Yuan repeat that: He! Was! Currently! Sobbing! In! Shen! Jiu’s! Lap!

With his face buried in his brother’s chest and his hot tears wetting the older boy’s clothes, Shen Yuan desperately wished the ground beneath his feet would open and swallow him up. At this point, Shen Yuan practically wanted to die from the shame.

But seriously, lemon juice?! How forced was this cutscene?! This couldn’t even be blamed on Airplane’s shitty writing, this was all on the System!

......System! Come out so Shen Yuan could beat you up!

Poor Shen Jiu’s body had gone completely rigid. The teenager was probably just as horrified with the situation as Shen Yuan felt himself. In other words, the older Shen brother was probably having a miniature melt-down.

Opening his mouth, Shen Yuan scrambled to fix the situation. He was completely ready to toss out an excuse and somehow laugh everything off. However, to his absolute mortification, the only thing that slipped out of his mouth was a choked sob.

_What the hell_ , Shen Yuan thought a tad hysterically as another sob shook his thin frame. His brother’s image of him had to be in complete tatters by now!

The stifling smell of lemon invaded his nose, causing tear after tear to drip out of his eyes. A few moments passed silently, just like this, with Shen Yuan crying desperately (because something splashed _acid_ into his eyes, thanks!) into his brother’s chest.

Then, the hands hovering at his waist slowly pressed down onto his trembling back, before they began stroking it gently.

A sudden lump appeared in Shen Yuan’s throat, making it difficult for him to swallow. The heavy lemon scent floating around in the air also began subtly dissipating, yet Shen Yuan’s tears just wouldn’t stop.

The stroking was such a familiar gesture, one that made his chest feel warm. But it was equally heartbreaking, because Shen Yuan knew that although the boy hugging him looked like his brother, he wasn't _really_ his older brother.

He wasn’t the aloof child who had held his hand as he took his first steps, nor the man that had indulged all his wishes before his death. He wasn’t the boy who had secretly begged their second foster parents to take Shen Yuan in, nor the man who worked himself to the bone just to make enough money to keep Shen Yuan alive.  

The boy with his brother’s face wasn’t Shen Jiu. He wasn’t, because Shen Yuan had already left his older brother behind.

......He had left Shen Jiu behind, and their unfinished plans for later would never bear fruit. Their plans for barbeque would stay just that—a plan that would never come to pass.

“A-Yuan, it’s fine......I’m here.”

A voice murmured above his head. It had been gruff, yet undeniably gentle. And it was precisely the trigger to Shen Yuan’s breakdown. Trembling, the younger began crying in earnest as he curled up against his brother.

......His brother—but not.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I seriously seem to only update when I'm dying lol. Currently deceased via cramps and anemia rip. Also, just finished a paper on mitochondrial proteins in oxylipin-activated plant defense (yeah, idk what I wrote about either), and now there's exams starting and wow brb dying 😂
> 
> Here's Shen Yuan again, hope everyone missed him lol. He'll be staying for another chapter, where I'll finish up his pov up to the meeting, and then we'll be swinging back to Shen Jiu again. And for the record, I won't be writing both povs for all scenes, only the important ones lolol.
> 
> Thanks for reading and wish me luck for exams ORZ.


	6. bling bling beauty blinds your eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come find me at my translation site [Sakhyulations](https://www.sakhyulations.com/) or my [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sakhyuu)!

【 _Ding_! The cutscene has now been terminated. Thank you to the host for their continued patronage. If the host wishes to inform us of their experience while using this product, please leave a review for the Little Scene Accelerator Helper by going dialing 1-800-HELPER! now~】

Shen Yuan’s sobs had just started to slow down when a flashy neon screen suddenly appeared and almost smacked him in the face. However, before he got a chance to finish reading the screen, the floating scene suddenly disappeared.

Shen Yuan: “......”

Immediately following that, someone knocked gently on the door. Stiffening slightly, Shen Yuan turned his head and buried his tear-stained face into Shen Jiu’s chest. He really hoped his brother would decide against opening the door, because Shen Yuan definitely didn’t want anyone to see him looking as pathetic as he did right now.

“QingQiu- _shidi_?”

A calm yet slightly worried voice floated through the door. The speaker sounded rather young, although his voice was deeper than both Shen Yuan and his brother’s juvenile voices. Unfortunately, Shen Yuan didn’t have any more time to ponder who this was, because the next thing he knew, Shen Jiu’s arms had tightened to the point his bones were even creaking!

【 _-_ 10HP!】

Feeling strangled, Shen Yuan didn’t even have any tears left to cry (terrible pun unintended). Jiu _-ge_ , were you actually trying to kill your little brother?!

“QingQiu- _shidi_? I......” That voice spoke up again, tone now calm and steady. After a rather lengthy pause, the—boy? Teenager?—said, “I brought Mu- _shidi_ with me.”

“......”

Despite Shen Jiu’s stony silence, Shen Yuan could almost hear his brother angrily gnashing his teeth. Which......wasn’t something Shen Yuan should worry about right now, considering how he was already almost out of breath.

“ _Ge......”_ Poking his head out of Shen Jiu’s tight embrace, Shen Yuan saved himself from a rather pathetic death of suffocating against his own brother’s chest before continuing in a breathy tone, “ _Gege_ , you’re hurting me.”

He felt Shen Jiu’s body tense again, before he was suddenly freed from his older brother’s death grip and gently pushed back onto his bed. Immediately following that, Shen Jiu stood up, his lean body stretched taut and his face slightly ashen. Shen Yuan didn’t have a chance to speak again before his brother stomped away, presumably to open the door.

......Wait!

Shen Yuan didn’t want to see any visitors right now! Big bro, couldn't we discuss this?!

Feeling slightly helpless against this turn of events, Shen Yuan buried his face into his blankets and carefully wiped away his tears. He probably cut a sorry sight, but he could at least attempt to make himself look somewhat presentable. Shen Yuan didn’t want to lose face so quickly after transmigrating.

That being said though, why was he caught in such embarrassing situations and still losing face after he had just died?! Please give this old man a break!

System, where was your conscience?!

【This System's conscience is in perfect working order. If dear host has any concerns, please dial 1-800-SYSTEM to lodge a formal complaint.】

“......”

After some quiet murmurs from the hallway, Shen Jiu returned with two teenagers in tow. Like any vigilant transmigrator, Shen Yuan immediately began sizing those two new guys up.

Unfortunately, upon reaching their faces, he almost felt his poor dog eyes go blind from the sheer handsomeness emanating from their general vicinity. In fact, the handsomeness was even making him hallucinate, because even flowers began floating around in the air.

What! The! Hell!

Who were these bishie ikemen?! Why were the production standards for the probably no-name characters greeting the scummy villain Shen QingQiu so high?!

Did Airplane Shooting Towards The Sky know his story’s budget was spent on things like this?! No, more importantly, who was the one responsible for allocating resources? Shen Yuan demanded a one-on-one PK with them!

A thousand grass-mud horses flew by in Shen Yuan’s heart as he stared blankly at the two guys behind his (also beautified) older brother. Damn, he really bemoaned his current inability to write a raging bad review!

After finally calming down from his spit-roasting spree, Shen Yuan began to actually observe the two boys Shen Jiu had invited in. The shorter one had a gentle countenance and was dressed in light, olive-green embroidered robes. The taller one also looked quite gentle, but there was a slight, oppressive aura surrounding him, as if silently telling others that he was not someone people could easily mess with. Combined with his fancy black robes, it gave him a rather dignified look.

Or at least, he would have looked quite dignified......if he wasn’t currently sporting a maiden-in-love’s pink blush while shooting his older brother furtive glances.

【For noticing Yue Qi’s crush, +10 Insight Points! Good job dear host, please continue to work hard!】

Not for the first time in the past hour, Shen Yuan’s brain promptly combusted. If someone were to pry open his head and look at the keywords flying through his mind, they would probably see a bunch of gibberish like: Crush?! Shen Jiu?! In love?! BL??!!

However, Shen Yuan didn’t even have the time to recover from the horror a younger sibling felt when they received TMI from their older sibling. This was because Potential Future Brother-In-Law turned to look at him with a worried expression (and thankfully no blush), one that successfully made all of Shen Yuan’s thoughts come to a screeching halt.

Because! Potential Future Brother-In-Law looked worried! For him!

 _Even though Shen Yuan had no fucking clue as to who he was_.

Shen Yuan suddenly remembered a problem he had conveniently forgotten about since his crying fest apparently took priority. He had transmigrated into <<Proud Immortal Demon Way>>, as someone who was essentially an OC! Shen Yuan had no idea what his relationships with the people here were like, or any of ‘his’ past history. And frankly, no matter how much the Shen Jiu here behaved like his own older brother, Shen Yuan really doubted <<Proud Immortal Demon Way>>’s Shen Jiu had the same upbringing as his CEO Shen Jiu did.

If Shen Yuan had transmigrated and became any of the canon characters, he could at least fumble his way through by basing his actions on what the canon character would do. But unfortunately, he had no clue what this world’s ‘Shen Yuan’ was like! After all, no matter how great of an actor Shen Yuan was, even he couldn’t act a role he didn’t have the script for!

Pursing his lips, Shen Yuan’s gaze flitted from his brother, to Potential Future Brother-In-Law, and then to the last person in the room. Well, if he didn’t have any memories of this world’s Shen Yuan, there was only one thing he could do.

......Even if he really, _really_ hated this trope.

“ _Gege_ ,” Shen Yuan said before he did his best attempt at channeling the expression of an amnesic patient. While sending a prayer to his online drama professor, he let his gaze flicker over to the new bishies in the room before making his face crumple slightly in anxiety. “Who......who are......?”

【Wow, that's actually not a dumb idea, dear host! +15 IQ points!】

......If Shen Yuan wasn’t trying to look pitiful, he would have cursed the System out. But fortunately, he managed to keep his expression from changing.

The results were immediate. Shen Jiu’s already pale face went completely ashen. Shen Yuan would have felt guilty, but then he watched his older brother crush the fan he had been holding into complete dust. In fact, an angry blush began creeping up Shen Jiu’s face, making him look a second away from snapping in anger.

...... _Ge_ , just what did that poor fan do to you?

* * *

In the end, Shen Yuan managed to successfully act out the role of an amnesic little brother who, despite forgetting everything else, still remembered his one older brother. In fact, nobody seemed to suspect him in the least. Shen Yuan really thanked his lucky stars for having the foresight to suffer through that one semester of online drama class.

Anyway, after Mu QingFang made that fuss, Shen Yuan was subjected to a thorough check by both Mu QingFang’s master and the Qing Jing Peak Lord. Much to Shen Jiu’s relief, he was apparently completely fine despite suffering a Qi deviation and losing his memory.

By the way, the _Shifu_ both he and Shen Jiu were apprenticed under was an odd man. Like everyone else Shen Yuan had seen so far, he looked completely gorgeous, and seemed to be one of those ‘cold and unreachable like a flower on a towering mountain ridge’ character archetypes. However, despite his deadpan and indifferent expression, the man......

......Completely doted on his older brother!

That’s right! When their master had walked in and saw Shen Jiu’s pale complexion and trembling fists, Shen Yuan swore the expressionless man had been just a step away from glomping his older brother!

In any case, Shen Yuan wondered why Shen Jiu seemed so wary of him. Their _Shifu_ all but pampered both twins, and honestly, Shen Yuan had no doubts that the quiet man would bend over himself if it would make his brother happy.

That being said, his brother had been all but skipping with glee these days. It would have freaked Shen Yuan out, except Shen Jiu had been happy _for him_.

Every time Shen Yuan’s cultivation went up another level, Shen Jiu looked like he was about to crack open a jar of wine and celebrate. Shen Yuan hadn’t even seen his brother be this happy over his own cultivation progress!

But speaking of his cultivation progress, although he was someone from the modern times, Shen Yuan took to cultivating like a fish did to water. In fact, he had somehow built his Foundation a few months ago and was granted permission to pick his sword from Wan Jian Peak.

It was no surprise that Shen Yuan improved so much, considering his sheer enthusiasm for it. Cultivating was just so badass! Sure, he was still levels below his older brother, but even he could hack down a few trees with just a gentle swing of a practice sword now!

Shen Jiu and the other peak lords, even the weakest Shang QingHua, had long chosen their own swords. At first, Shen Yuan had been afraid that wouldn’t be able to find a good one. After all, he was only an OC in this world, and he was the younger brother of a scum villain to boot.

Fortunately, he had been worried for nothing. The sword he chose was a high-grade, powerful, yet pretty thing, with fancy silver clouds engraved in its hilt. It truly made the weeb part of Shen Yuan puff up with pride.

Since the naming of a sword was apparently an Important Affair here, Shen Yuan ended up asking his brother to name his sword for him. Shen Jiu didn’t refuse, and promptly picked the name Xiang Jing.

Shen Yuan spent a few days wondering why the name sounded so familiar, when he suddenly remembered. It was from the original quote with Xiu Ya, written by some dude from the Ming dynasty!

_‘ <<Slapping the Table in Amazement>> Volume 4: Just now at the restaurant, I met a gentlemen who cultivated elegance (Xiu Ya). He wasn't disrespectful like other people, therefore we were mutually respectful (Xiang Jing).’ _

Shen Yuan had to give his brother a thumbs up for knowing this line. He was truly the next lord of the Bookworm Peak. And don’t ask Shen Yuan why he would remember a measly detail like this, alright? He definitely did _not_ read a random guy’s 10k word review praising Airplane’s naming sense, no sirree.

Time passed pretty quickly in this manner. If this had been a novel, this was probably where a timeskip in the narrative occurred. Every day, Shen Yuan got up, ate a (tasteless) breakfast with his brother, went to attend _Shifu_ ’s classes, and then spent the rest of the time cultivating before dinner. Sometimes, his brother would watch over him, although those sessions lessened the more time passed.

One day, after his cultivation went up another level and his Foundation stabilized, their master suddenly decided that Shen Yuan ought to meet the other chief disciples. Hence, Shen Yuan ended up tagging along during his disgruntled older brother’s new mission brief.

Although Shen Yuan was slightly disappointed that his leisurely days were now over, he was still a bit excited. After all, it would be the first time he left the Sect.

“How rude, _shimei, shidi_. You two ought to show my brother more respect.”

......And then, Shen Yuan promptly discarded all of those thoughts when he saw his brother begin courting death. Decline decline decline! He didn’t want to do this mission anymore, could he please squirrel away his brother back to the safety of their Qing Jing Peak?!

“......And he is here, because?” The pretty boy dressed in white demanded harshly. By now, Shen Yuan was already used to being blinded by gorgeous people, but this guy upped it up an entire notch. His features were extremely delicate, and there wasn’t a single blemish to be found on his perfect face.

The most ironic thing was that judging by his white robes, this guy was Bai Zhan’s chief disciple, the future War God Liu QingGe. Liu QingGe, Author-sama would probably cry if he was to see your face. Sure, Airplane had implied the War God to be ‘pretty’, and he was the female lead Liu MingYan’s brother for a reason, but Shen Yuan doubted Airplane would have imagined the guy to look like a delicate and gorgeous princess!

In fact, there wasn’t even a need to mention Mu QingFang or Yue QingYuan anymore. The <<Proud Immortal Demon Way>>’s production team had probably spent their entire budget just on Liu QingGe’s face!

Wait, was this why Liu QingGe had died so early in canon......?

While Shen Yuan seriously pondered over the reasons behind Liu QingGe’s early death, his brother glared at the pretty boy in question before snapping, “Is there a problem with him being here?”

【Liu QingGe’s Affection Points for Shen Jiu has gone down by 5! Current Affection Points: -90】

What?! Minus ninety?!

“You......!” Liu QingGe’s responding glare looked like he wanted to hack Shen Jiu into pieces.

Shen Yuan’s heart leapt into his throat before he hurriedly pinched Shen Jiu’s palm. Big bro, lil’ bro was begging you here! The main plot with Luo BingHe hadn’t even started yet, so please, _please_ stop courting death!

“ _Shidi!_ ” Yue QingYuan also cut in, stopping Liu QingGe from drawing his sword before he subtly gave Shen Yuan a pleading look. Although he pretended to not see it, Shen Yuan still gave his brother his best imitation of the so-called puppy-dog eyes.

“......Fine!” Thankfully, like his brother in the modern world, this Shen Jiu also immediately caved with a huff. And that was all Yue QingYuan needed to calm everyone down and take control of the situation. After a disciple brought an extra chair for Shen Yuan, the teenager started passing out the mission brief.

“Let us start the meeting first, we can all socialize after we talk about business. This is what we will focus on today. Our next assignment concerns the _jiangshi_ army surrounding Mingyang City.”

Shen Yuan listened attentively to the mission brief, captivated despite himself. This mission hadn’t been mentioned before in the original text, which made him wonder whether or not it was an arc Airplane had thrown away, or if it was completely new content.

The focus of the mission sounded deceptively simple, although everyone there knew it definitely wouldn’t be. Basically, an army of corpses had barricaded in Mingyang City. None of the dead had stepped foot into the city, but anyone who tried entering or leaving the city were mauled to death. Thus, the city governor sent over a plea for help to Cang Qiong Sect.

“ _Shizun_ has ordered us to split into three groups,” Yue QingYuan continued. “Mu- _shidi_ , Liu- _shidi_ , and QingQiu- _shidi_ will accompany me at the frontlines. We are to investigate and see if there is anything odd about the _jiangshi_ army itself. Wei- _shidi_ , Shang- _shidi_ , Qi- _shimei_ , and Yuan- _shidi_ , you four will be responsible for investigating within the city, and for providing aid for the people trapped inside. The rest of you will wait take care of Cang Qiong in our absence, and be our back-up if we request it. Are there any questions?”

【-3HP!】

Shen Yuan winced. He didn’t even focus on the various questions everyone started asking, because he was too busy trying to save his hand from Shen Jiu’s death grip. His brother was holding his hand so tightly, he was almost afraid it would suffer the same fate as Shen Jiu’s last fan.

But it wasn’t like he didn’t understand why his brother was suddenly so unhappy. Shen Yuan didn’t want to be separated from his brother either, although he understood that his team would be relatively safer than his brother’s since they were staying inside the city. Shen Jiu probably understood that too, because other than squeezing his hand, he made no other protests.

“Alright then,” Yue QingYuan said after fielding half a dozen questions. Smiling gently, he stood up in a smooth move and said, “Everyone’s dismissed. Please have a good rest, we will leave at dawn.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Done 2/6 exams, 4 more to go rip. Please pray for my dying grades lmao.
> 
> The quote with Xiu Ya here is an actual quote from the first of two books of vernacular stories by Ming dynasty novelist Ling Mengchu. Yeah, the series is actually called Slapping the Table in Amazement. I would say they're kind of like the equivalent of Chinese classical novels? I don't know if MXTX actually got Xiu Ya from this, but that's where I got Xiang Jing came from haha. 
> 
> Chinese raws is: 《初刻拍案惊奇》卷四：“适间在饭店中，见公修雅，不像他人轻薄，故此相敬。”
> 
> If anyone was wondering, 修雅 is Xiu Ya (Cultivating Elegance) and 相敬 is Xiang Jing (Mutually Respectful)! Thanks to eik for helping me pick these names! 
> 
> Grass-mud horses refers to [this](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grass_Mud_Horse) lol.
> 
> Also, SY loses some HP here and there because of SJ, but don't worry, it's like the HP one would lose when they stub their toe. His actual HP bar is probably like in the thousands or ten thousands, LOL.
> 
> But man, this is the longest chapter yet. It's actually around 2x my normal chapters, because I wanted to keep switch to Shen Jiu's POV by next chapter......I hope everyone enjoyed it!!


	7. hey wanna go to some cute meet-greets?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come find me at my translation site [Sakhyulations](https://www.sakhyulations.com/) or my [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sakhyuu)!

When it came to missions, Cang Qiong Sect sent out teams that consisted of an equal amount of combatants and support types. For their current team lineup, Bai Zhan Peak and Qiong Ding Peak disciples were of course the fighters, while the disciples of Qian Cao Peak cultivated support martial arts.

However, disciples from peaks like Qing Jing Peak were more of a jack-of-all-trades. Although Shen Jiu’s combative skills weren’t something to laugh at, he was also very adept in support-type arts like low-level healing and protective barriers or arrays. This was why he was usually sent instead of Mu QingFang for the more dangerous missions, since he was so versatile.

As his twin brother and a disciple of the same peak, Shen Yuan’s skill set greatly mirrored his own, albeit his brother was predictably much weaker since he was currently at a lower cultivation realm. Thus, for this mission, there was absolutely no way Yue QingYuan would pick Shen Yuan over the likes of Mu QingFang. Not when Mu QingFang would have Liu QingGe, Yue QingYuan and even himself to protect him.

Shen Jiu knew this.

Logically, he knew that he and his brother would be separated for this mission. He also knew that he had no grounds to complain, because his brother would be safer _inside_ the city walls. However, just because he knew these things didn’t mean he was that happy about their assignments.

This would be Shen Yuan’s first mission, but Shen Jiu wouldn’t be there to protect him. Sure, he knew from first-hand experience that Shen Yuan wasn’t weak, and that his brother didn’t necessarily  _need_ anyone to protect him.

But......

This was his only brother. His always sickly, little brother. If anything happened to him on this mission......

“Shen...... _shidi_?”

A cheerful yet slightly hesitant voice snapped Shen Jiu out of his darkening thoughts. Hackles already rising, Shen Jiu lifted his head, ready to snap at anyone stupid enough to bother Shen Yuan. However, it hadn’t been a random nosy disciple greeting his twin brother, but _Shi QingXuan_.

It was Shi QingXuan. Shen Jiu’s rigid shoulders immediately slumped back down.

Although Shen Jiu wasn’t particularly close to any of the other chief succeeding disciples (save his broken relationship with Yue QingYuan, perhaps), Shi QingXuan was the only one he would tentatively call his...... _friend_. He was the chief succeeding disciple of Hu Ling Peak, the one that specialized in spiritual barriers and arrays.

Frankly speaking, Shi QingXuan wasn’t someone Shen Jiu would have actively befriended, not that he would actively befriend anyone. Although Shi QingXuan also came from a noble family like Liu QingGe, he had never looked down upon him. In fact, the chief succeeding disciple from Hu Ling Peak was disgustingly upbeat and kind to practically everyone, and honestly......wasn’t someone Shen Jiu felt he deserved as a friend.

Not Shen Jiu. Kind Shen Yuan deserved him, maybe, but not Shen Jiu.

However, for some odd reason, Shi QingXuan became keen on befriending him the moment they first met. It was admittedly hard to refuse someone as persistent as him, especially when the other disciple had ended up saving his life a couple of times during missions. Shen Jiu didn’t know how it had happened, but Shi QingXuan managed to wear down the walls built around his heart in the end.

Indeed, Shi QingXuan wouldn’t do anything harmful to his brother. And if he ever hurt Shen Yuan, well......even if they were friends, Shen Jiu wouldn’t hesitate to strike down anyone who hurt his twin.

“......Yes?” Shen Yuan spoke up slowly, his tone incredibly neutral.

Shen Jiu felt more than saw his brother’s eyes dart toward him. While the corners of his lips almost tilted up because of Shen Yuan’s barely-masked, pleading looks—was his little brother _shy_?— Shen Jiu stepped forward to do some quick introductions.

“Shi- _shidi_ ,” he nodded at the other disciple before waving at Shen Yuan. “This is my brother Shen Yuan.”

“Shi- _shixiong_ ,” not one to lag behind, his brother immediately greeted Shi QingXuan before giving him a proper salute. “This _shidi_ is honoured to meet you.”

“......” Shi QingXuan stared at Shen Yuan with wide eyes before he suddenly burst into delighted giggles. “Pft ahahahaha, there’s no need to be so nervous, Shen- _shidi_. It’s nice to meet you too.”

After admiring the slight (healthy!) pink that dusted Shen Yuan’s cheeks for just a moment, Shen Jiu returned his attention back onto his fellow chief disciple. “Was there something you needed, Shi- _shidi_?”

“Other than my sudden, dying desire to meet your adorable brother?” Shi QingXuan asked in a cheeky manner, seemingly also delighting in Shen Yuan’s reddening complexion.

“Yes,” Shen Jiu replied, a tad dryly. As much as he would have liked to watch Shi QingXuan tease his brother further, the two of them had to return to Qing Jing and begin packing for their mission.

Shi QingXuan pouted. “You’re no fun, Shen _-shixiong_! But yes, I did have something to give to you.”

Shen Jiu curiously watched the other disciple dig into his white robes. A second later, Shi QingXuan triumphantly pulled out a necklace from his sleeves and then stuffed it into Shen Jiu’s hand.

“......What’s this?” Shen Jiu shrewdly studied the necklace. The pendant seemed to be made out of white jade, and was in the shape of a little fan. In addition, there was a little ‘wind’ character painted in the centre of the fan.

“My newest creation, a medium-tier amulet,” Shi QingXuan explained. “When activated, it should become a protective barrier made out of wind. Shen- _shixiong_ , if you find a chance, can you test it out for me during this mission?”

Ah. When a new barrier or array was created in Hu Ling Peak, it had to be tested by a dozen or so cultivators during an actual mission before it could be mass-produced. Shi QingXuan didn’t crank out new designs that often, but whenever he did, he usually asked Shen Jiu to be one of his testers.

“Of course I will," Shen Jiu gave Shi QingXuan a nod as he put away the necklace. “Was there anything else?”

“No,” Shi QingXuan said with a happy grin, before it melted away as his face turned serious. “Be careful out there, _shixiong_. You too, Shen- _shidi_. Please make sure everyone comes home safely.”

 _Home_. Was Cang Qiong Sect his home?

“Hmph,” Shen Jiu turned away, even as something warm unfurled in his chest. “Shi- _shidi_ , you worry too much.”

“What _ge_ meant was 'thank you for the concern',” Shen Yuan piped up with a small smile. It seemed like his brother was quite taken with Shi QingXuan’s bubbly character.

“Ahahahaha, I mean it! ” His friend called out again from behind them. “Take care, you two!”

 _We’ll be home soon_ , Shen Jiu didn’t say before he quickly ushered his little brother out of the room.

* * *

 Like always, despite being a rather urgent mission, travelling by sword was still considered too high-profile. Thus, a dozen horses and a carriage were waiting for them when Shen Jiu and his brother arrived at the gates of the Sect the next morning.

Shen Jiu took one look at the tall horses and the rigid saddles before he grabbed Shen Yuan and made a beeline to the carriage. After all, Mingyang City was a whole day away by horse. There was absolutely _no way_ he was going to let his fragile brother suffer and ride one of those finicky animals for such a long time.

“Tch, what a princess,” a voice grunted from above their heads. A familiar voice, belonging to someone Shen Jiu really wished he could pummel.

Unsurprisingly, his back went completely rigid the moment he heard those words. Head snapping up, Shen Jiu levelled a withering glare at the offender.

It was Liu QingGe. _Of course_ it was Liu QingGe.

“ _Gege..._...” However, before he could say anything scathing back, his little brother tugged on his hand. Shen Yuan sounded rather...... _nervous_ , for some odd reason.

 _Wait_.

His brother was frequently ganged up by the disciples from Bai Zhan Peak, and Liu QingGe wore the white robes of Bai Zhan Peak. Even his oblivious A-Yuan would realize Liu QingGe was Bai Zhan Peak’s chief succeeding disciple.

......Was his brother _scared_ of Liu QingGe?

“ _G-Gege_?”

Once again, self-loathing bubbled up in his chest as Shen Jiu’s expression turned startling ugly. How did Shen Jiu not see his brother’s mistreatment, done by the hands of _Liu QingGe_ of all people? How had he not noticed anything, until it was nearly too late?

Ignoring the slight confusion that appeared on Liu QingGe’s face, and well, his fellow chief disciple in general, Shen Jiu whipped around and started dragging his brother over to the carriage. Mark his words, he would get back at Liu QingGe in the future. But for now, his twin’s comfort was far more important.

“Hey!” A disgruntled female voice spoke up when Shen Jiu stuffed his brother into the carriage and jumped up himself. Seated across from them, Qi QingQi gave the two boys a faux-baleful glare. “Why are you stinky men intruding on _my_ carriage?”

“I should be the one saying that instead,” Shen Jiu barely refrained from rolling his eyes before he replied snappily, his mood already long ruined by his brief encounter with Liu QingGe. “This is one of Qing Jing Peak’s carriages. I am fairly certain _shifu_ had prepared it for Shen Yuan's sake.”

“Please, you intend to make a _lady_ like me ride a horse while you two sit here and daintily sip your tea?” Qi QingQi fired back with an amused huff. This time, Shen Jiu truly couldn’t hold back his eye roll.

A lady? Where?

Xian Shu Peak was renowned in the cultivational world for their delicate beauties, where each pretty maiden on the peak was fairer than the next. At least, that was what all the rumours claimed. Shen Jiu didn’t know where the world went wrong, because Qi QingQi, Xian Shu Peak’s future Peak Lord, was definitely neither delicate nor fair.

No, Qi QingQi was a banshee hidden in human skin, more vicious than any old hag. Sure, she may look like any gorgeous and busty _shijie_ , but her beautiful visage was all a lie. The prim and proper girl sitting in front of them right now was almost as deadly as Shen Jiu was himself.

In fact, Shen Jiu had heard of many stories where Qi QingQi had whipped perverts half to death with the spiritual whip gifted to her by their Sect Leader. Although Xian Shu Peak usually produced support-type little sisters, Qi QingQi favoured combat far more than any type of support martial arts. Even Shen Yuan, who had just started cultivating, was probably better than her in that aspect.

“So, this is your brother?” Qi QingQi’s eyes raked over Shen Yuan’s figure. “You two really look identical.”

“Stop staring!” Bristling, Shen Jiu shifted and covered his brother from her gaze. Although a strange kind of camaraderie existed between Qi QingQi and him, Shen Jiu knew that the girl’s tongue could be even crueler than his own.

“Oh please,” Qi QingQi snorted. “Calm down, Shen- _shixiong_. It’s not like I’m going to _eat_ your brother or something.”

The corners of Shen Yuan’s lips twitched before he hid his mouth with his fan. Then, Shen Jiu’s brother bowed his head and politely said, “Qi- _shijie_ , it’s nice to meet you.”

Qi QingQi stared blankly at Shen Yuan for a long moment. Shen Jiu was already gearing up with a few scathing remarks in case she said anything against his younger brother, when the girl suddenly erupted into loud cackles. “Oh, this is so rich! I can’t believe I can enjoy the sight of _your_ face calling me _shijie_!”

“......” Shen Jiu relaxed before he rolled his eyes again. Reaching out, he pulled his still befuddled brother onto the seat beside him as Qi QingQi continued to laugh. “Is it truly that funny?”

“Oh, shush you,” Qi QingQi wiped away a tear before giving Shen Yuan a wink. “For fulfilling one of my deep and darkest desires, leave everything to _shijie_! I won’t let anything happen to you on this mission, Shen- _shidi_.”

Shen Jiu paused as the girl gave him a knowing look. He knew this was Qi QingQi’s way of promising him that she would take extra care of his younger brother. Indeed, just knowing that the fierce girl had his brother’s back did made Shen Jiu feel much more reassured.

“Me too!”

However, before Shen Jiu managed to convey his thanks, Shen Yuan suddenly spoke up. There was a determined glint in his brother’s eyes before he abruptly blurted out, “Qi- _shijie_ , I will protect you too!”

Qi QingQi looked surprised, and then she suddenly grinned. “Boy, I like you. How are the two of you even related?”

“Shut up.” After gently swatting his brother’s head, Shen Jiu rolled his eyes again. This was going to be one long ride.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hu Ling (护灵) Peak -- 'Hu' means 'to protect', and 'ling' means spirit. Thanks to eik for helping me with the name!
> 
> I only responded to some of the first comments from last chapter, but I'll get to the rest soon! I just......need to do my homework first ^^;;
> 
> IMO this chapter is a bit boring, but hey, at least it was cute? And ahahaha, did you recognize a certain someone from this chapter? If you didn't, that's okay, just treat the kiddo as an OC, but if you did, thumbs up to you!
> 
> Sorry for taking so long to update, btw, I would have gotten this out sooner since it was already written but damn has life been jam-packed lately. I sometimes have lab work from 8AM to 3PM and then class from 3PM to 9PM, do Real (TM) adults feel this busy all the time? 😂😂😂


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